it at the bird.  Now the king’s son was playing in the exercise-ground with the ball and the bat,[FN#208] and the stone lit on his ear and cut it off, whereupon the Prince fell down in a fit.  So they enquired who had thrown the stone and finding that it was Bihkard, took him and carried him before the king’s son, who bade do him die.  Accordingly, they cast the turband from his head and were about to fillet his eyes, when the Prince looked at him and seeing him cropped of an ear, said to him, “But for thy villainies thine ear had not been cut off.”  Said Bihkard, “Not so, by Allah!  Nay, but the story of the loss of my ear is so and so, and I pardoned him who smote me with an arrow and cut off my ear.”  When the prince heard this, he looked in his face and knowing him, cried out and said, “Art thou not Bihkard the king?” “Yes,” replied he, and the Prince said to him, “What ill chance threw thee here?” Thereupon he told him all that had betided him and the folk wondered and extolled the perfection of the Almighty, crying “Subhana ’llah!—­laud to the Lord!” Then the Prince rose to him and embraced him and kissed him and, entreating him with respect, seated him in a chair and bestowed on him a robe of honour; and he turned to his sire and said to him, “This be the king who pardoned me and this be his ear which I cut off with a shaft; and indeed he deserveth my pardon by having pardoned me.”  Then said he to Bihkard, “Verily, the issue of mercy hath been a provision for thee in such hour as this.”  And they entreated him with the utmost kindness and sent him back to his own country in all honour.  “Know, then, O king” (continued the youth), “that there is no goodlier quality than mercy and that all thou dost of clemency, thou shalt find before thee a treasure for thee treasured up.”  When the king heard this, his wrath subsided and he said, “Return him to the prison till the morrow, so we may look into his case.

The Eighth Day.

Of Envy and Malice.

When it was the eighth day, the Wazirs all assembled and had speech together and said, “How shall we do with this youth, who overcometh us with his much talk?  Indeed, we fear lest he be saved and we fall into destruction.  So, let us all go in to the king and unite our efforts to gain our cause, ere he appear without guilt and come forth and get the better of us.”  Accordingly they all went in to the king and prostrating themselves before him, said to him, “O king, beware lest this youth ensorcell thee with his sorcery and beguile thee with his wiles.  An thou heardest what we hear, thou wouldst not suffer him live; no, not a single day.  Wherefore heed not his speech, for we are thy Ministers, who endeavour for thy permanence, and if thou hearken not to our word, to whose word wilt thou hearken?  See, we are ten Wazirs who testify against this youth that he is guilty and entered not the king’s sleeping chamber save with ill intent, so he might put the king to shame and outrage his honour;